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Food Desert
Access to healthy food is becoming a serious concern for the people of Minnesota, the Midwest and United States. Many residents of Minnesota are trying to come up with ways of dealing with the food desert problem, to help them deal with diet related health problems since getting fresh vegetables has been a problem. A contributing factor is that the rich can easily access fresh vegetables at a high price and the poor are forced to survive on what they can afford. Fresh food to the poor becomes a luxury and they prefer to save by surviving on cheap, unhealthy meals. Minnesota has been rated poorly when it comes to health equity of its residents. This means that the state has a very high obese rate with more than 10% of the population due to poor eating habits like lack of fresh vegetables and fruits Hinrichs, C. C. (2007).Re-creating the North American Food System: Policies for Sustainability. Nebraska: U of Nebraska Press.. Minnesota has been considered to having the highest number of food deserts Hinrichs, C. C. (2007) 321. Last year the U.S. agriculture department decided to release a desert locator that was supposed to categorize every community with as low as 20% poverty levels and that of average families. The research showed that, acquiring fresh vegetables and other healthy foods in Minnesota and other areas was a problem because they are simply not available. Factors like poor education on the importance of good nutrition has led to people not coming up with ways of acquiring healthy food. There is also the issue of transportation to various parts of the desert making it hard for people who can provide fresh foods to access some parts of the state and the Minnesota people are left with no choice but survive on processed food. Most people in areas where food deserts are found live on very low incomes and financial benefits are not easily offered to them. This forces them to only purchase the basic needs so things like vegetables that are really expensive to acquire becomes a luxury they cannot afford. In Minnesota, there is in urgent need to come up with a healthy eating program that will reduce obese percentage in that area. Nutritionists have consistently recommended the governing council to create a direct link between fresh farm produce and buyers. This can be achieved if people embrace positive urban farming programs and follow the specifics of coming up with good farm produce that consist of fresh vegetables and fruits. Schools and hospitals can follow the same procedure and encourage students and patients to eat regular amounts of apples, bananas, oranges, avocados, pineapples and mangoes instead of rushing for fast foods such as sodas, chips, and other unhealthy foods. The government could encourage grocers to come up with project that will ensure that Minnesota never runs out of fresh foods by providing them with low interest loans. This way people will engage in activities that help them and create employment too. People can also have kitchen gardens to provide fresh products for their families. Food desert areas can really benefit from these projects if they are well managed. ----